![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.conversiondiary.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/09\/7_quick_takes_sm1.jpg\" "\\"7_quick_takes_sm\\"")
<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a>\u2014 1 \u2014<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n First, just a reminder that today I\u2019m reading the first meditation in Cardinal Bergoglio\u2019s (Pope Francis\u2019s)\u00a0Open Mind, Faithful Heart: Reflections on Following Jesus<\/em><\/a>\u00a0for the year-long book-club I\u2019ll be running here<\/a>. \u00a0It kicks off Monday, so get reading, if you\u2019re interested!<\/p>\n <\/a>\u2014 2 \u2014<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n And if you\u2019re looking for something delightful to read, perhaps you\u2019d like to check out the extraordinary Christmas present that my friend Nicola made for her husband, Will. \u00a0His patron saint, St. William of Gellone<\/a>, has a\u00a0<\/a>chanson de gueste<\/a>\u00a0<\/em>written in the late eleventh century. \u00a0Unfortunately, it\u2019s not available in English\u2026 until now. \u00a0Nicola translated the Old French verses about St. William\u2019s monkhood and the end of his life into just plain French and then into English. \u00a0And you can read her delightful translation here<\/a>.<\/p>\n <\/a>\u2014 3 \u2014<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Over the holiday season, I ended up spending a non-negligible amount of time reading through the entire archive of\u00a0Dip that pen, Shake that speare<\/em><\/a> (the source of the cartoon the other week, where Shakespeare protagonists switched places<\/a>). \u00a0I really recommend poking though the archives and adding it to your feedreader. \u00a0And, to entice you, I\u2019ll just share this link to that blog\u2019s history of the letter \u2018v\u2019 in English<\/a>.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, back in England\u2026 I know I said West Saxon ( aka Old English) had no V. Let me take that back. What I meant was, they had no letter V\u2014but they\u00a0did\u00a0<\/em>have the sound. The V sound, though, was close enough to the F sound that they just used an F instead. This served everyone perfectly fine until the French-speaking Normans invaded and soon started influencing the spelling of Anglo-Saxon words. \u00a0The letter F was sometimes replaced with the letter U, and both were pronounced as V. (The Anglo-Saxon ambivalence toward differentiating the \u00a0F\/V sound is still present today in nouns with an F that turn into V in the plural, like knife\/knives, hoof\/hooves.) I know this is all very confusing, so feel free to take a breather.\u00a0Here are some dog .gifs I have accumulated<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/a>\u2014 4 \u2014<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n You know how you can tell your life is filled with an embarrassment of riches? \u00a0When you have\u00a0two<\/em> awesome Shakespeare tumblrs to share in a single week. \u00a0My theatre major brother and I passed a very enjoyable evening reading through the archives of Shakesketch<\/a> together and exclaiming over our favorite illustrations of lines from Shakespeare. \u00a0Here\u2019s one of my favorites:<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Ok,\u00a0two<\/em> of my favorites:<\/p>\n <\/a>\u2014 5 \u2014<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n I was really confused when I saw friends on facebook linking to reviews to a sequel of Chess<\/a>. \u00a0After all, it\u2019s not like chess is a franchise. \u00a0But the game sounds entertaining, with a number of rule tweaks (including an additional victory condition, below) and the ability to play with asymmetrical sides optimized for defence or aggression, etc.<\/p>\n The new Chess has some rules that seem quite out there, at first. But that might be because it\u2019s hard to imagine Chess changing. My first time playing Chess 2, I had to come to grips with the Halfline Invasion rule. If a player brings their king beyond the halfway mark, it\u2019s an instant win. Sound easy? It\u2019s actually a self-balancing rule. The closer you move to the halfway point, the more likely squares are to be in check \u2014 both because it\u2019s closer to enemy pieces, and because your opponent can see you doing it. And as the match goes on, and pieces are eliminated, the Halfline Invasion becomes easier \u2014 reducing stalemates.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n The goal is to make chess feel more like a\u00a0game<\/em>, where you use some of the same kinds of reasoning as in normal chess, but without the obligation to memorize openings or get pummeled by those who have. \u00a0It sounds like a fun idea.<\/p>\n <\/a>\u2014 6 \u2014<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n And speaking of delightful reinventions, my parents took my brother and me to\u00a0A Gentleman\u2019s Guide to Love and Murder<\/em><\/a>, an exceedingly delightful musical loosely inspired by the original source for\u00a0Kind Hearts and Coronets<\/em><\/a>. \u00a0The protagonist of the musical discovers that he is only nine relatives removed from an Earldom and begins merrily murdering his way into the gentry. \u00a0All nine of the D\u2019Ysquiths who precede him are played by a single, very talented actor, with a flair for characterizations and quick changes.<\/p>\n I\u2019ve linked two video previews below (from the out of town tryout, so some roles have been recast) but you\u2019ll have a good sense of the show.<\/p>\nhttp:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=XqSiP34Zxv8<\/a>\nhttp:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=0b2iarSSfxk<\/a>\n <\/a>\u2014 7 \u2014<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n And one final amusement that turned up during the Christmas season: while scrolling through a In Focus slideshow of Christmas Around the World<\/a>, I discovered that Seattle has a giant troll sculpture under one of its bridges.<\/p>\n The [18 foot tall] sculpture, built in 1990 of steel rebar, wire and concrete, clutches an actual Volkswagen Beetle and sports a hubcap as an eye, but is usually bare-headed. The figure is often referred to as the \u201cFremont Troll.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And here\u2019s what the big guy looks like:<\/p>\n<\/a>
And make us lose the good we oft might win
By fearing to attempt.\u201d
-Lucio, Measure for Measure, 1.4<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/a>
-A Midsummer Night\u2019s Dream, 3.1<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n